Seeing Drake on Saturday did help the next week to go by quicker than the first. It was Thursday – only a few more days until he would return from the hockey camp. Bragnae traded hours with a co-worker to have off on Sunday, so she could meet Drake as soon as he came back.

Thursdays weren't so bad to work. The shifts usually went by quickly because a lot of college students didn't have class on Fridays, or they were just eager to get the weekend started despite one more day of classes in the week. Either way, Thursdays were good nights for tips, and Bragnae was happy to take this night knowing Drake would appreciate spending more time with her when he returned.

Even though she still had access to Drake's truck, she decided to take her own car to work tonight. She wasn't insured with his vehicle, and didn't want to risk damaging it in any way while he was gone. Luckily, her car had started up just fine, so Bragnae was able to drive it the few blocks to Mikey's.

The first two hours of her shift went by fast. She had gotten into a groove of taking orders, filling drinks and boxing up leftovers that helped her turn over her tables more quickly. She was about to take a fifteen minute break when Leo walked through the front door. They made eye contact immediately.

Bragnae hadn't seen him since the day she picked up Drake's keys. She hoped he was there as a customer, but when he made a B-line for her, she knew he wanted to talk again.

"Hey, how's it going?" He asked, standing close enough to be heard over the crowd.

"Good," she said. "Do you want a table?" She gestured towards the busy room.

Leo shook his head. "No, I was wondering if there was a place we could talk? It'll only take a few minutes."

His timing was uncanny. If she hadn't been about to take a break, she could easily tell him to shove off, but knowing his determination, even if she said it now he'd find out that she was available anyway. She looked into his bright blue eyes, and exhaled a deep breath. "I was just about to take my break. Come on, we can go out back."

Relief crossed over his face. "Lead the way."

Bragnae led Leo to the back entrance where the staff would come in and out for their shifts. A co-worker was smoking a cigarette at the small round table where she would have wanted to sit down. Instead she walked over to her car, and sat lightly on the hood to face Leo.

She crossed her arms over her chest. "So, what do you want to talk about?"

"I want to talk about us, Bragnae. About that night at the club – about you." He kept his gaze trained on her, and spoke with more confidence than the last time she saw him.

"We already talked about this. Why do you need to bring it up again?" She couldn't deny that the memory still pained her, and talking or thinking about it only made the wound reopen more.

"We talked about it, yes, but we didn't get to finish. I've tried to give you some space, but I just can't anymore." He looked at the ground briefly, taking in a breath. "What I did to you was exactly what my ex did to me. I hate myself because I know how it feels to be hurt like that – to not have a say in the matter. I hate that I hurt you, and I'm sorry."

His words started to fill the holes of pain he left in her heart, but it just wasn't enough. "You can say you're sorry all you want, but it won't change what you did to me."

"I know, but that's why I want to make it up to you. I want to fix this."

"For what purpose? To be friends again? Or are you hoping I'll be with you instead of Drake?" She admired his persistence, but to what end?

He took a step closer to her with a confident stare. "All of it. Bragnae, I want you back in my life. I want to see you smile at me like you used to. I don't want to see the pain on your face every time I get near you. I want you to heal. I want us to get over this."

She wanted to heal from it too especially with Leo being Drake's roommate and friend. She wanted to be able to see Leo in passing when she hung out with Drake, and not want to harden her heart because of the memories he left her with.

"I know why you're having a hard time moving on from this. You're even with Drake now, and yet you still can't heal. I know why." His voice grew softer with every word, but the tenacity of his message didn't falter. "You cared about me then, and you care about me now."

He was right. Somewhere along their friendship and the intimate moments they shared, she had developed feelings for him than ran deeper than the surface. "So, what? Are you going to use that knowledge to exploit me to get what you want?"

"No, never." Leo took another step forward. "I will never use you again. I just wanted to see if I was right. I wanted you to see that you still have feelings for me. And just now, you didn't deny it."

Bragnae felt her eyes start to water. She looked to the sky to keep any tears from falling. "Leo, I don't want to talk about this."

"We can't move past this unless we do." He moved closer again, but this time he reached a hand out to gently stroke her cheek. "I know I hurt you very badly, but you never told me how much."

She shook her head. The wound was already opening back up, and she couldn't take it anymore. She didn't want him to have the satisfaction of knowing what he did to her.

"Bragnae, please," he coaxed gently as he towered over her.

Leo stood so close that she could smell his intoxicating fresh cologne, and the smell immediately jogged her memory of the night at the club. All the feelings she had, both pleasant and lousy, came rushing back to her. Bragnae felt anger surge through her body prompting her to shove Leo back as she stood from the hood of the car.

"You ruined everything! We had a beautiful moment together, and you ruined it. I felt so cheap and used and unworthy. You spent the majority of that day making me feel amazing with your kindness and appreciating looks in my direction. But then, when you started to push me away, I felt useless. My confidence was shot. You made me feel like I did something wrong. I was mind fucked for days while I waited for you to call me. And you never did. You avoided me like I was the plague."

She was helpless to stop the tears that streamed down her cheeks. "You know, what your ex did to you was awful, but at least you had closure with her. At least she told you openly that she wanted to end the relationship. I did not receive the same curtesy from you. Granted, we weren't in a relationship, but we were friends, Leo, and you could have at least told me all you wanted was sex and that whatever we had was over."

Leo closed the gap between them again, gently grabbing both of her arms to keep her attention. "But I didn't want it to be over, Bragnae. I was just protecting myself, but deep down, I knew I wanted you. I wanted more than the amazing sex we had, but I didn't have big enough balls to stand up to my fear. I know that was my mistake. I'm just hoping that if I acknowledge all of this and tell you how god damn sorry I am that you'll forgive me."

Bragnae angrily wiped the tears off her face. "Drake treats me like every girl should be treated. He's amazing in every way. Even if I wanted to ends things with him to be with you, how could I be sure that you wouldn't let your past interfere with your future again? How could I be sure that you wouldn't just run away or push me out when you thought you might get hurt?"

"I wouldn't do that, Bragnae. I've grown up a lot in the past few weeks. I realized just how much you mean to me, and there's no way I'd ever intentionally hurt you again. I'm done running from my past. It leads to nothing but emptiness. I know that because being with you makes me feel whole again. And I can't live without that... not when I know how much better it feels to embrace happiness over being bitter and letting pain run my life."

"Why don't I believe you?" She really wanted to, but something told her to keep him at a distance so he could never make her feel this way again.

"Because I misplaced your trust in me, and I regret that more than you know. But I'm trying to get it back, baby, I really am."

His voice was laced with sincerity, but hearing him call her 'baby' just now made her think she could easily be replaced by someone else. Sure, she could've been the one that revived his broken heart from the past, but maybe that's all she was good for. Maybe who he became since then, a man searching endlessly for different women to satisfy his lust, would still remain. The trust was gone – that was for certain – and the idea of him trying to earn it back seemed pointless.

"Leo, I'd love to go back to how things were between us before all of this, but I just don't think we can." She felt herself start to tremble, and knew she hated having to say that to him as much as he did having to hear it.

He looked into her eyes for a long moment. The realization that she wouldn't change her mind dawned on his face. "Bragnae," he pleaded softly as one last ditch effort to sway her.

"I have to get back to work."

Leo reluctantly dropped his hands, and stepped aside to let her pass. She gave him one last look, and then headed inside. Before stepping back into the dining area, she dashed into the ladies room to remove the evidence that she was crying. Luckily, her face hadn't gotten too red, and she was able to touch up her eyes without affecting her make-up.

She was mad at Leo for doing this to her at work, but she knew deep down it needed to be said. All of it. And now, hopefully, they both could move on. Bragnae left the bathroom, and returned to her duties.

A little while later, she headed over to a table of three guys that needed their check. They were a bit rowdy, and had been sitting there drinking beer and eating pizza almost since the start of her shift.

"Here's the check, guys. Just pay me whenever you're ready," she told them, placing the white receipt down on the wooden surface.

"Oh, hey. Wait a minute. I've got that now," one of the guys said. He was the most rowdy out of the three, and hadn't been shy about trying to flirt with her either. After looking at the bill, the man retrieved cash out of his wallet, and handed it to Bragnae. "Keep the change, gorgeous."

"Thank you very much. I hope you guys have a great rest of the evening. Come back, and see us again." She smiled and turned to walk away when she felt a pinch on her backside.

Bragnae immediately spun around to face the arrogant prick that copped a field after handing her what he assumed was a big enough tip to give him the freedom to do that. The man was thick and had an athletic build like a football player. His curly black hair made his face look full, and his crooked, cocky smile did nothing for his looks. She glared at him. "You have some nerve."

"You sure got her attention, Ralph," one of his idiot friends commented in between laughs.

"I sure did," he said, looking up at her triumphantly. "You got a nice ass, honey. Don't let this pizza be the only thing I'm taking home tonight."

Furious, she thought back to her training with Leo, and decided she wouldn't let this asshole get away with it. Since she had lost the moment to catch him off guard when she first turned around, she chose a different approach. A wicked smirk transformed her lips as she leaned in towards him.

Ralph and his friends chuckled as she flirtatiously ran her hand across his meaty shoulder and over to the collar of his t-shirt, gripping the fabric tightly in her fist. Just when he thought she'd bend over to give him a smooch, Bragnae cocked her fist back and slammed it against his eye making him fall hard onto his giggling friend.

"The only thing you'll be taking home besides your pizza is a black eye. Don't ever fucking touch me again, asshole." She turned on her heel, hearing a roaring laughter coming from his friends, and Ralph murmuring insults in her direction.

The punch hurt her hand, but Bragnae felt great. For a brief moment, she knew she had Leo to thank for instilling that confidence in her, but it was still a feat she accomplished. She allowed herself a moment of internal celebration before getting back to work.

As she made her rounds, she kept a careful eye on Ralph and his friends, happy to see they left without any further retribution. The rest of her shift went smoothly – something she needed after the talk with Leo and dealing with an entitled, disrespectful asshole.

After leaving through the back door, she got in her car and turned the key to start it. The engine wouldn't turn. She tried several more times with no luck. She knew it wasn't the battery because she just replaced it. It had to be something more. The 'check engine' light had been on lately, but she hadn't gotten around to inspecting it yet.

"Damn it. I should have just taking Drake's truck tonight," she said aloud to herself.

Not wanting to spend money on an Uber, Bragnae grabbed her purse, and left the car. She'd walk home. It was only a few blocks, and the clear night with a slightly cool breeze was actually comfortable after running around the restaurant all night.

Before she began her trek down the street, she popped her head in the back door to tell the manager she was leaving her car behind and walking home. She'd have to call a tow truck tomorrow.

She crossed the street, and began following the sidewalk that would eventually lead to her apartment. After walking a few minutes, she heard someone call out behind her.

"Hey! Hey you, pizza bitch."

An eerie feeling shot down her spine. Bragnae looked over her shoulder to see Ralph and his two friends slowly following behind her. She kept walking, but hastened her steps.

"I know you can hear me, pizza bitch. Why don't you slow down, and let me talk to you?" Ralph shouted.

Bragnae wanted to ignore him, but felt words coming out of her mouth anyway. "Go home! You're drunk!" She kept up her pace while digging in her purse for her phone. She dialed the police to have it on standby if she needed it.

Looking behind her again, she saw they were closer. She wanted to avoid running as to not show her fear, but they were gaining on her. So, she bolted. Her apartment was only another block away. She glanced over her shoulder seeing Ralph and his friends running too. Even as drunk as they appeared to be, somehow they were catching up to her.

Her heart thumped in her chest, her breathing was heavy. Her eyes darted everywhere for a place to escape. The street lights illuminated her path. Cars passed on the road, but no one seemed to notice that she was being chased. As she came up to the last intersection she'd have to cross to get to her apartment, she halted nervously as she waited for a car to pass in front of her. Grabbing for her phone again, she had her thumb over the call button when it was suddenly knocked out of her hand.

Bragnae turned around just to catch a heavy open hand swat across her mouth. The force knocked her to the ground. In a flurry, she heard a loud roar from the street, and the footsteps of the three men quickly surrounding her. The two friends encircled her as Ralph lowered himself to the ground, grabbing Bragnae's ponytail in anger.

"You stupid bitch. I'll teach you never to embarrass me again," he snarled as he pulled her hair and unsteadily began ripping at her shirt. He reeked of beer and even began spitting as his words left his mouth. She was both disgusted and frightened.

"Get off me!" She screamed with all her might. "Help, please!" Bragnae kicked with a fury, but Ralph laid his heavy weight on top of her once flailing legs.

"What the fuck?" She heard one of his friends say. There was a commotion around them that she couldn't see because of Ralph's massive body. That and she was focused on trying to survive.

Ralph uncoordinatedly tried to untuck her shirt from her jeans, but was failing. He became frustrated and literally growled in her face before attempting to stand up. "Come on. I'm taking you back to my place."

Bragnae knew that was her chance to run, but as soon as Ralph tried to hoist her up, she saw Leo throw him to the pavement away from her. She watched, stunned, as Leo bent to one knee and punched Ralph repeatedly in the face. Her eyes darted to Ralph's two friends lying on the sidewalk. One looked unconscious while the other slowly crawled on his stomach, groaning with each movement.

Her attention was brought back to Ralph when she saw Leo stand up out of the corner of her eye.

"Pathetic piece of shit!" Leo shouted as he kicked Ralph on the side. "If you ever fucking touch her again, I'll cut your dick off, and shove it down your goddamn throat. Got it?" Ralph groaned again before passing out.

Bragnae was still lying on the sidewalk, but had propped herself up on her elbows to watch the scene unfold. Leo turned to her suddenly. His chest heaving deep breaths as he crouched down beside her.

"Are you okay, Bragnae?" His eyes, filled with worry, scanned her body frantically. His hand gently cupped the side of her face as his gaze focused on her lips. "Oh, God."

"Leo," her voice creaked out as tears pooled in her eyes.

"I've got you. You're safe," he told her, pulling her to his chest. She clung to him desperately.

After a few seconds, he drew back. "Can you stand up?"

She nodded while he helped her to her feet.

"Let's get you home." Leo picked up her purse and threw an arm around her waist as they walked across the street.

The shock of everything still hung in the air around her. Tears were streaming down her face, but she hadn't allowed herself to fully break down and cry yet. Her mouth and jaw ached, and so did the backside of her body where she collided with the hard concrete.

Fortunately, her apartment wasn't that much farther than where the scuffle took place. Leo took her keys to unlock the door, and guided her inside.

"Come here," he told her, taking her hand gently and leading her to the bathroom connected to her bedroom. "Let's get you cleaned up."

When he flipped the light on, more tears flooded her eyes as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her bottom lip was bleeding, and there was some redness across her cheek and jaw where Ralph had hit her. Her black hair was a mess. Still half in its ponytail, there were tendrils of hair out of place all over her head. The black and orange t-shirt she wore with the pizza parlor's logo on it was ripped in the front. She whimpered at the sight and pain she felt.

"It's okay, Bragnae. Come here and sit down." He helped her to sit on the covered toilet, and then grabbed a wash cloth. He ran it under the cold water, wringing it out before kneeling in front of her. Leo draped the cloth over his hand and cupped her bruised cheek.

Bragnae closed her eyes in relief. The cold cloth felt good against her irritated skin. When she opened her eyes again, there was Leo's staring back at her. "Thank you. That feels nice."

He gave her a sympathetic look before softly wiping the blood away from the corner of her mouth. "What happened with those guys anyway? Why were they chasing you?"

She sniffled and took in a deep breath. "They were at the restaurant, and I was their server. When I brought the check, Ralph – the guy that was on top of me, paid the bill and when I turned to leave, he pinched my ass. So, I punched him in the eye."

"Using those self-defense skills we practiced, eh?" Leo asked while he continued to clean her face.

"Yeah, but Leo, he waited for me to exact his revenge for making him look bad in front of his friends. What good does it do to defend myself one minute when I'm putting myself in more danger later?" The thought of it made a fresh batch of tears swell in her eyes.

Leo put the rag down to give her his full attention. "It's not always going to be that way, Bragnae. You did the right thing tonight. Just because you pissed off some asshole jock who had something to prove, doesn't mean they're all going to try this. But it is better to fight than to just let it happen – no matter the consequences. And besides, that's not who you are. There's no way Bragnae Bennett would let anyone get away with that crap. You're tough and you know it."

A brief smile appeared on her lips. "Thanks."

He picked up the cloth again and dabbed at her bottom lip. "So, why were you walking home anyway? I thought you had a car... and Drake's truck for that matter."

"I took my car tonight, but it wouldn't start when I was trying to leave. It's normally a rule of mine to avoid walking to and from work during night shifts, for this very reason, but I thought I'd be fine. It was only a short walk." She shook her head at her bad decision. Her eyes drifted over him, from his face to his chest, to his tender hands caring for her injuries. "How did you know I needed help? I mean, you were there at the right time."

He blew out a breath. "After our conversation, I didn't leave. I couldn't. I walked around to a couple of the stores next to Mikey's, but I just didn't feel like going home. Something told me to stick around. I was sitting on my bike just watching the street lights change when I saw you walking. Call me a creep if you want, but I just sat there and watched you. I thought it was weird that you were walking home, and I guess my protective instinct kicked in, so I needed to make sure you got home okay. I held back a good distance, so you wouldn't know I was there, but I followed behind as sort of an escort for you."

The muscles in Leo's jaw tensed. "And then I saw those three guys start to follow you. And when they started to run, I knew it wasn't good. So, I hauled ass on my bike to where you stopped, and took them down one by one. I hated them, Bragnae. I wanted to rip them to shreds. But I knew I needed to do the bare minimum to neutralize them long enough to get to you. I couldn't let them hurt you."

A lump of emotion caught in her throat as she listened to him share his side of the story. She shuddered to think what could have happened if Leo wasn't there to save her tonight. If he hadn't waited around after their conversation, if he hadn't decided to make sure she got home safe... she'd be in much worse shape now.

Bragnae placed a quivering hand against his face. Even after denying his persistence, and basically guaranteeing they couldn't even be friends earlier in the night, Leo stepped in to help her out of a dire situation. He was there for her with nothing waiting for him in return. He didn't do it to push his own agenda with her. He did it because he cared about her and wanted to protect her. That meant something.

"Thank you for saving me." Without a second thought, she pulled him into a warm embrace. When his chest crashed against hers, she felt safe and comfortable.

His long arms tightened around her back. "You don't need to thank me for that. I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

She squeezed her eyes shut, allowing the built up tears to finally fall. Clutching his back, at last, she allowed herself to give into the trauma of the night. Leo held her steady, rubbing a soothing hand across her back as she cried.

After a few moments, he gently drew back from her. "Why don't you take a moment to yourself, and get into some comfy clothes? I'm going to go move my bike out of the street, and when I get back, I'll grab you some ice for that lip." He reached a hand up to pull the rest of her hair out of the disheveled ponytail it was still in. His gentle fingers glided through her hair allowing it to frame her face.

She nodded. "Okay, thank you."

Leo patted her knee before standing up. When he left the bathroom, Bragnae turned to the mirror again. She looked a fright. Her make-up had run, her lip was busted open – although not enough that stitches were required, and her face was starting to swell.

After she removed the rest of her make-up, she washed her face, and ran a brush through her hair. Then, she changed into flannel pajama pants and a fresh t-shirt. It was near her bed time anyway, so she completed the rest of her nightly routine before going to sit on the edge of her bed.

The night had been horrendous. When she thought the only thing that would have disturbed her was the hard conversation with Leo earlier, three guys tried to assault her. And to her surprise, Leo – of all people, was there to defend her. As she waited for the sound of her front door to open again, she found herself wanting to see Leo walk through it. What an unexpected turn of events.

A minute or so later, Leo came back into the apartment, and she felt a sense of peace again. His presence meant she was safe and cared for. It was an amazing feeling. Bragnae heard him walk into the kitchen and take ice cubes out of the freezer. She smiled at the thought of him tending to her this way. Before tonight, there was no way she could have ever imagined him doing that.

Leo stepped into her bedroom with a bundle of ice wrapped in a hand towel. He sat down on the bed next to her, and lightly applied the ice to her mouth. "Here, hold this on your lip for a while. It will help with the swelling." She took the bundle from him as he fished an object out of his pocket. "I found your phone on the sidewalk too. Thought you'd like to have it back."

Amidst the commotion, she had forgotten that it was knocked out of her hand. She took it from him noticing the screen was still intact. "Thanks. And look at that – not a scratch on it."

Leo lightly chuckled. "That's one good thing to come out of this at least." He looked at her for a moment before sighing. "I should probably get going. I'm sure you want to get some sleep."

Just as he was about to stand up, Bragnae put a hand on his leg. "Will you stay with me tonight? I'm still a little shaken up about everything, and I'd feel better if you did."

His eyes bore into hers as he contemplated his options. "Yeah, of course. I can go sleep on the couch." He stood from the bed. "I'm sure I'll scare the shit out of Madeleine when she comes home. With my luck, she'll plop down on me thinking I'm the couch."

"No, Leo," she said as he started to walk out of the room. When he turned to face her, she used her head to point beside her. "I meant in the bed with me."

"Oh," he replied, looking from her to the bed. He swallowed before took a step towards her. "Okay. If that's what you want."

She nodded, and scooted back towards the pillows, climbing into the sheets.

He watched her for another moment. "Just let me clean myself up a bit." He held up his bloodied fists from the repeated punches he threw tonight. "I'll be right back."

Bragnae relaxed her sore body on the comfortable mattress, keeping the ice stationed on her lip. The coldness felt good. Already the night was looking up.

A couple minutes later, Leo walked back into the bedroom. He stepped out of his shoes, and put his wallet, keys and phone on the bedside table before climbing into the sheets next to her. He kept his t-shirt and jeans on presumably to not encourage other actions to occur. Or maybe he was nervous. Bragnae would never mistake Leo for being nervous, especially around a woman, but it was possible. As he settled in, his body was still rigid.

He was most likely waiting on a cue from her since this was something he hadn't expected her to ask of him. In that moment, Bragnae acted on her instinct. After the drama filled night, she scooted over to Leo and curled up by his side to feel his warmth. Immediately, she felt at ease.

Situating herself to a comfortable position, she rested an arm on his chest to help keep the ice on her lip. "As I fall asleep, I might drop this ice, and it might startle you with its coldness."

Leo laughed. "That's alright. I can handle it. Just rest."

"You too." She looked up at him so he would know she meant it. She waited for him to take a deep breath, and then felt his body sink more into the mattress. "Goodnight, Leo."

"Goodnight, Bragnae."